Online sales take a hit from poor identity and access management

Research shows that 71 percent of consumers have abandoned online business due to complicated web forms, and that 80 percent have been locked out of websites because they can't remember log-ins.

Identity and access management company Ping Identity commissioned research among 1,000 UK consumers. It found that increasingly lengthy and complex log-in processes and web forms are driving consumers away from websites.

It probably wasn't surprising that so many had locked themselves out of websites after not remembering log-ins, as nearly a quarter (24 percent) had log-ins for up to five websites, an equal number juggled six to ten websites, and almost a third (30 percent) faced the logistical feat of remembering log-ins for between 11 and 20 websites, said Ping.

As a result of this "password amnesia", nearly 50 percent of consumers have had to re-set a password, with over a fifth (21 percent) having to do so "on a regular basis".

The online frustration doesn't stop with passwords though, with 71 percent of respondents saying they had abandoned a "fill in your details" form. The vast majority (77 percent) said they had done so because the form "simply took too long", while 58 percent left the site because the form was "too detailed".

In addition, over half of respondents gave up on a website because the form demanded information they didn't have to hand, while almost a fifth were frustrated because the company didn't remember their details from their last interaction with them.

"With more than half of respondents logging into an online shopping site with a password up to five times a day, this login barrier could cost businesses dearly," said Andrew Hindle, director at Ping Identity.

Hindle said: "Loyalty is dead if e-tailers lose a customer at a critical point in a sale, they are unlikely to ever return. E-tailers need to make the registration and payment process as seamless as possible, by deploying systems that centre on a prospective customer's identity, and which recognise returning customers to give them quick and easy access."